Luke 24:6 He isn’t here! He has risen from the dead! Don’t you remember what he told you back in Galilee,Luke 24:7 that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again the third day?”Luke 24:8 Then they remembered that he had said this.Luke 24:9 So they rushed back to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened.

It’s around 3:00 O’clock in the afternoon on a Friday and Jesus utters those famous last words on the cross, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said these words the Son of God breathed His last breath and gave up His life. There is no doubt that His disciples seeing what had been done to their Savior, whom they thought would rise to power and rule over Israel at that time, were devastated. Even though Jesus had told them He would be delivered into the hands of Pharisees and then crucified, they still didn’t get it. FULL POST

Heb. 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,Heb. 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Recently I have been studying more and more about faith and learning more than I had ever known before about faith. Faith is one subject you will never fully exhaust in this lifetime, but it is something that every believer has the ability to walk in. When you take a look at Hebrews 11, the great hall of faith as many call it, you begin to see what God calls faith. For years I have heard what many men call faith, but when you find out what God calls faith, now you have something. FULL POST

Luke 10:38 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.Luke 10:39 And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word.Luke 10:40 But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”Luke 10:41 And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.Luke 10:42But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”FULL POST

In this third and final part of our series on how we can make sure we give satan no place in our life we will cover the third way scripture reveals as to how satan comes. The first two ways we covered in part one and two revealed how he comes as an angel of light through false and deceptive teachings; and how he comes as a serpent, very sly and cunning. This week we will cover how he comes as a roaring lion.

1 Pet. 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.1 Pet. 5:9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.FULL POST

Last week we began talking about what we need to do to give satan no place in our lives. His primary target in our life is our soul, which is made up of our mind, will, and emotions. If the devil can change our way of thinking, getting us to think like the world, he can change the course of our life. In fact, before getting born again most of us were already conditioned to do so. That is why we must renew our minds to think now like God thinks. What satan has been a work doing is in infiltrating every part of society for the purpose of conditioning our minds to think contrary to God. There are three primary ways he works to do so.

2 Cor. 2:11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.FULL POST

One of the keys to succeeding as a believer is you must know who your enemy is, how he works, and what you must do to give him no opportunity in your life. The devil would like nothing more than for believers to remain ignorant of how he works, and what he is up to because for those who are ignorant of his ways, he can then work in one’s life to deceive and seduce bringing about his ultimate desire, which is to take control of your life.

First and foremost we must understand what satan’s primary target is in the lives of people. When you understand what that target is and then learn how he works you can fulfill what the apostle Paul stated here in Ephesians 4:27 and give him no such opportunity to work in your life. His target is the soul of man. The soul is made up of our mind, will, and emotions. If he can get your soul reprogrammed to think, act, and feel the way he wants you to then he has control of what goes on in areas of your life. FULL POST

Heb. 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.Heb. 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Faith is a subject that you can never truly exhaust or learn all about because faith is something that should be continually increasing in the life of a believer. One of the things we must do is make sure we are actually walking in the faith of God and not a worldly type of faith. The faith of the world has to see something before it can believe it. The God-kind of faith believes when it cannot yet see it.

I want to share some very powerful and timeless truths about faith. Like anything in life it is easy to drift away from what true faith really is. Many times I hear believers who say they are believing God for something, but then when you hear them speak or see what they are doing in relationship to what they are believing for it becomes evident that often they are not in Bible faith. Faith is what connects us with God, and so it is vitally important to make sure we are walking in the principles of Bible faith. FULL POST

Acts 3:19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,

Last week I shared a message about false converts. Unfortunately there are many who believe they are Christians, which means one who follows Christ’s example, but have never had a true conversion experience. When you do have a true conversion experience you are a convert in Christ. The word converted here in this verse means you have turned your life around and done a 180 and are now walking after God.

The concern I have for many who say they are Christians is that they may not realize they are false converts. Jesus did not die to give us a “ticket to heaven”. Jesus died to change our life here on earth and provide us the way to heaven. Do we really think based on all of what scripture reveals of how God wants to transform our life that we are to pray a prayer and not see change in our lifestyle? Should we still look and act like those who don’t know God at all? Not according to scripture. FULL POST

2 Cor. 13:5 Examine and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your faith and showing the proper fruits of it. Test and prove yourselves [not Christ]. Do you not yourselves realize and know [thoroughly by an ever-increasing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless you are [counterfeits] disapproved on trial and rejected?

Most people who see my title this week would probably automatically say they are not a false convert and for most I believe that is true, but it is important even if you are not one to understand that there are many false converts who need to know the truth about salvation. I have seen many examples of this. One that comes to mind is a gentleman who in our church is being raised up as a teacher of God’s Word. At a very young age he prayed a prayer at the altar, but by his own confession never notice any change in his life. He went on to live a life of sin and destruction up until several years ago. FULL POST

Mark 4:14The sower sows the word.Mark 4:15And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.Mark 4:16These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness;Mark 4:17and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble.Mark 4:18Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word,Mark 4:19and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.Mark 4:20But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”FULL POST